Welcome to the Centre For BME Health

The Centre for Black and Minority Ethnic Health is located in one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the UK and is uniquely placed to conduct research on issues affecting the health and wellbeing of ethnic and migrant communities. The Centre for Black and Minority Ethnic Health works to address the health inequalities in health care access and health outcomes by supporting individuals and organisations in planning and undertaking research and healthcare delivery involving and understanding Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) and seldom heard communities.

The Centre for BME Health aims to reduce health inequalities locally and nationally by working with patients, the public, community and voluntary sectors, researchers, and health & social organisations. We have a number of community-based research staff who engage with seldom heard communities and inspire community-led research. We design and deliver resources and alternative methodologies that are informed and led by communities who are ‘not reached’ by some clinicians and researchers. These methods and our involvement allow us to promote culturally-sensitive resources and raise awareness of community engagement and collaboration across research and healthcare delivery. We also deliver research with BME groups, host a BME Community Partners’ Panels, provide BME Engagement and competency training and collaborate with researchers, universities and organisations to widen participation with seldom heard groups.

Our Vision

We are an organisation that is committed to actively inspiring and developing dynamic and collaborative partnerships between patients, public, community and voluntary sectors, researchers, health and social care organisations and others, to help address ethnic health disparities.

Our Objectives

Develop and implement capacity building programmes aimed at supporting and enhancing researchers’ skills, knowledge and confidence to produce high-quality research involving the active participation of BME and seldom heard communities in all aspects of the research.

To develop and provide centralised and co-ordinated toolkits and resources for organisations and individuals to share and disseminate good practice in conducting research with BME and seldom heard communities.

Actively influence a culture of practice in which BME public involvement informs and supports research, service planning, commissioning and delivery of health and adult social care services and healthcare; and where achievements are shared, valued and celebrated.

Undertake community engagement strategies that foster the trust and support of BME and seldom heard of communities to participate in joint working activities related to research and implementation in the field of health and social care, and to resource their capacity to act on this commitment.

What we do

The Centre for BME Health provides opportunities to be at the heart of practical solutions, through focussed work with communities. It has established links with the Academic Health Sciences Network (AHSN); local Clinical Research Networks (CRNs); Local Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs); CLAHRC partner institutions including the University of Nottingham’s Institute for Mental Health; the University of Birmingham and University of Warwick: other institutions within the Midlands Health Innovation Network; and charitable organisations including the South Asian Health Foundation.

Cultural Competence is woven throughout all the work of the Centre for BME Health and this methodology will explicitly support the outputs in style, culture, language and approach.

The unique East Midlands Centre for BME Health, situated within the LDC for optimal engagement, offers training and existing infrastructure for public engagement and involvement to help improve the quality, quantity and impact of research output in the area of ethnic and migrant health. It is our understanding of this element through our far-reaching engagement, plus the experience of clinicians that places us in a unique position to both engage and develop appropriately.

Our experience has led to the cultural adaptation of a range of health education and awareness materials.

Community Involvement

Services

Research

Collaboration

Partners & Collaborators

The ‘Centre for BME Health’ is supported by the University of Leicester, Leicester Real World Evidence Unit, National Institute for Health Research’s Applied Research Collaboration East Midlands (ARC-EM) and Leicester Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) Programme.

Contact

Centre for BME Health
Diabetes Research Centre
College of Life Sciences
Leicester General Hospital
Gwendolen Road
Leicester
LE5 4PW

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